13-Year-Old Boy Arrested for Shooting Younger Sister to Death

A 13-year-old boy was charged with third-degree murder for allegedly shooting and killing his 12-year-old sister last week. The horrific incident occurred in Upper Providence Township, Pennsylvania on Friday.

The children's mother, Daisy Vasquez, has asked her son, Jah'sir, to get her gun out of the car. Jah'sir then entered the residence, holding the gun in his right hand, and pointed it to at his younger sister, Jasiyah.

The gun was fired at point-blank range, hitting the girl in the chest, and she immediately fell on the ground, according to a Crime Online report.

District Attorney Kevin Steele said in a statement on Friday that Jasiyah was found dead in the living room when they arrived, and Jah'sir was arrested.

The teen was held without bail for a third-degree murder charge as the surveillance footage showed how the shooting happened.

"We followed the evidence in this case, which clearly showed that the 13-year-old shot and killed his sister. Despite the child's age, Pennsylvania law requires that we charge Jah'sir Vasquez in adult criminal court for the shooting death of his sister," Steele said as NBC News reported.

Probe on the Death of Jah'sir's Sister

Dr. Ian Hood, the forensic pathologist with the Montgomery County Coroner's Office, did an autopsy on Jasiyah's body. Hood confirmed that the cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the chest and listed the manner of death as a homicide. The case remains under investigation.

Aside from the third-degree murder and related charges, the teen was also charged with a minor's involuntary manslaughter and possession of a firearm by a minor.

The child suspect was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Cathleen Kelly Rebar, who denied bail and ordered that Jah'sir be held at the Montgomery County Juvenile Detention Center.

On Mar. 26, Jah'sir is set to attend a preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Richard H. Welsh.

Gun Violence

According to an Amnesty report, more than 500 people die every day because of gun violence, with 44 percent of all homicides around the world are connected to gun violence.

The majority of the victims and suspects are young men. However, it was found that women are particularly at risk of firearms violence done by an intimate partner.

In the U.S., about 134,000 people were shot and injured by firearms in 2017, with some of the victims needing permanent, lifelong care. Rates of gun violence in the country vary from state to state and the character of the violence.

Some states report relatively low rates of gun-related homicides. However, they have high rates when it comes to gun-related suicides, according to an American Progress report.

Some of the states with the highest rates of gun-related deaths are Alaska, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, with rates higher than 18 gun deaths per 100,000 people.

On the other hand, New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Hawaii have lower rates, with five gun deaths per 100,000 people.

More than 35 percent of gun deaths in the U.S. are gun homicides, which means that around 33 people are murdered with a gun daily.

The gun homicide rate in the U.S. is 25 times higher as compared to other high-income countries.

WATCH: 13-Year-Old Boy Charged in Shooting Death of 12-Year-Old Sister: Police - From 6abc Philadelphia